


Hand-Me-Down Happily Ever Afters

by sheryl_sems



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Adoptive Parents Abby & Marcus, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bellarke, Bellarke feels!, Blake sibling feels, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Linctavia - Freeform, Marriage, Marriage Proposal, Minor Gina Martin/Raven Reyes, Multi, The 100 Alternate Universe, Wedding Fluff, Wedding Planning, Weddings, the 100 au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-19
Updated: 2017-07-19
Packaged: 2018-12-04 09:25:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11552286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sheryl_sems/pseuds/sheryl_sems
Summary: "Don't be silly, Octavia. I want you to wear it, we both do," Clarke shares a smile with her mother and reaches out to grasp her best friend's hand. "And who knows when I'll get married- I'm yet to find someone who would tolerate me for the rest of their life. Even Mom might marry again before I do." Abby laughs but her eyes flick over to Bellamy, who is staring at her daughter in a way she's caught him staring multiple times. Clarke, as usual, remains blissfully unaware.~Where Octavia Blake, Raven Reyes and Clarke Griffin receive their happily ever afters, each with a different hand-me-down from families that aren't their own. Families that they never dreamed of ever having but got anyway, because blood doesn't make family, love does.





	Hand-Me-Down Happily Ever Afters

**Author's Note:**

> So I wrote this in one evening and it's 12:30am but I can't sleep unless I post it because I loved writing this so bloody much and want to share it with you all! I suck at summaries so if anyone has any suggestions for a better one, let me know ;D But basically I adore the idea of Abby and Marcus stepping in to fill the parents' roles in the delinquent's lives so I spun up a fic about it :'') Enjoy this one! And if you have a moment, do comment with your thoughts // if it's worth it, hit kudos/bookmark/comment! xx

**i. Octavia**

  
  
Clarke, Bellamy, Octavia and Raven sit on the living room floor with envelopes, cards and labels spread out around them. A stack of fifty-four silver and blue invites are piled in the middle of their circle. Clarke would grab one off the top of the stack, put it in a dark blue envelope and pass it to Bellamy, who would stick a label with a unique address on the top and then seal the envelope. Meanwhile Raven would take the next invite in the pile and do the same, Octavia labelling and sealing them.   
  
  
"Halfway through," Octavia announces, placing her sealed invite on the growing pile on her right.   
  
  
"You're worried we're getting bored, aren't you?" Raven laughs.  
  
  
"You dedicated your Saturdays to helping me send out invites, of course I'm worried you're bored," Octavia says, looking sheepish.  
  
  
"Exactly, O. We _chose_ to dedicate our Saturday to you. You aren't forcing us to do it," Bellamy says. "This is fun, don't worry."  
  
  
"And it's not every day you get married," Clarke adds, grinning.  
  
  
"I would bloody well hope not," Bellamy frowns jokingly and the others laugh. The doorbell rings and he turns to Octavia, "Are we expecting anybody?"  
  
  
"You're not," Clarke replies before Octavia can answer. "It's one of Octavia's wedding presents."  
  
  
"What?" Octavia asks, standing up. She walks over to the door and opens it. Abby Griffin stands on the other side with a long package slung over her arm. "Abby! What are you doing here? Wait, are you my surprise wedding present?" Abby laughs. "Not like it's not a great present! It's lovely to see you." She steps forward and hugs the older lady, who returns the hug warmly. Clarke stands up to hug her mother and then Abby leans over to press a kiss against Raven's head before waving to Bellamy with a soft smile.   
  
  
"What are you doing a two hour drive away from home? The wedding isn't for another three weeks," Raven asks.   
  
"I come bearing Octavia's wedding present," Abby answers. She drapes the package, a garment bag, across the armchair behind Clarke. Octavia turns to Abby questioningly. "Go on, have a look."  
  
  
Octavia carefully unzips the bag and when the zip reaches the bottom, she realises what the garment is and steps back, her hand flying to her mouth. She spins around to Abby. "Is this- Abby… You bought me a wedding dress?"  
  
  
"It's not exactly bought," Abby says. "I fished it out of my closet and got it dry-cleaned. It was mine from when I married Jake twenty-six years ago." Octavia's eyes widen further and she looks back at the dress. She reaches out to take the gown out of the bag and lays it over the bag and across the armchair. It's a porcelain white A-line floor-length sheath gown with an empire waist and a laced sheer neck and capped sleeves.   
  
  
"It's beautiful," Octavia breathes. Raven's eyes are wide with surprise and awe and Bellamy's are tracing the intricate detail on the dress. Clarke is smiling broadly. Octavia turns to Abby. "I can't accept this, Abby."  
  
  
"Why not?" Abby frowns. "If you don't like it, though, I understand. We'll get you another-"  
  
  
"It's not that," Octavia quickly says. "It's perfect. It's everything I dreamed of but I couldn't possibly wear _your_ wedding gown. If anything, Clarke should be the first to wear it after you." She turns to Clarke who chuckles softly.  
  
  
"Don't be silly, Octavia. I want you to wear it, we both do," She shares a smile with her mother and reaches out to grasp her best friend's hand. "And who knows when I'll get married- I'm yet to find someone who would tolerate me for the rest of their life. Even Mom might marry again before I do." Abby laughs but her eyes flick over to Bellamy, who is staring at her daughter in a way she's caught him staring multiple times. Clarke, as usual, remains blissfully unaware. Her eyes meet Raven and she knows that she's not the only one who has noticed. Raven offers her a small secretive smile which she returns.  
  
  
"We would love it if you wore it, Octavia," Abby says. "You're two sizes smaller than I am, I think. But with a little alteration-" She doesn't finish her sentence as Octavia barrels into her, arms wrapping around her neck. It takes her a few seconds to realise that the younger girl is crying, tears soaking into Abby's collar. She holds her tightly, her own eyes welling up.   
  
  
"I don't- I don't-" Octavia is spluttering out incoherently. She pulls away, their arms still around each other and she takes a few deep breaths. "I don't know how to thank you, Abby. You didn't have to do this."  
  
  
"Of course I did," Abby says softly. She reaches up to tuck Octavia's hair behind her ear. "I know I'm not your mother, darling… But I consider you my daughter." Octavia's face crumples up again and she's burying her face into Abby's shoulder again, sobbing.   
  
  
Clarke breathes out a laugh, wiping her own tears and one look at the others shows her that Raven is wiping her eyes with a tissue and Bellamy's got his lips pursed in an attempt to stay composed. Their eyes meet and he mouths _thank you_. She smiles and nods at him and suddenly she has an armful of Octavia, who has thrown herself at her best friend.  
  
  
"I love you so much," Octavia whispers, clinging to her tightly. "I don't know where I'd be without you."  
  
  
"I love you too," Clarke says. She smiles at her mother over Octavia's shoulder and the Griffin ladies both feel like their hearts could burst with happiness.   
  
  
+++  
  
  
The front door is opened and Clarke glances up to see Bellamy enter. He shrugs out of his jacket and hangs it up on the coat stand by the door before toeing his shoes off. He then sighs heavily and drops into the seat beside Clarke on the sofa. She saves the report she's typing up before placing her laptop on the coffee table and turning to face him.  
  
  
"Octavia hasn't stopped crying the entire day," He says, laughing softly as he sinks into the cushions comfortably. Clarke smiles and tucks her legs underneath her, resting her cheek against the back of the sofa.   
  
  
"Is mom still with her?" Clarke asks.  
  
  
"Yeah, they're checking out a few big flower shops," Bellamy nods. "Abby's insisting on covering the costs of the flowers for the wedding." He frowns. "She really doesn't have to."  
  
  
Clarke smiles softly. "Yeah, but she wants to. God knows she's been desperate to plan my wedding but she's never got the chance. As soon as I told her Octavia was getting married, she looked like the happiest mother on the planet."  
  
  
"She still doesn't need to _pay_ for a part of the wedding. You already convinced her to give O her wedding dress, that's more than enough," Bellamy says.  
  
  
"Firstly, I didn't have to do much convincing. I overheard Octavia talking to Lincoln about how she had no hand-me-downs from Aurora and I brought it up with my mom and the first thing _she_ asked _me_  was if it would be okay if O wore her wedding gown. I obviously had no problems with that. So no, I didn't convince her. She thought of it herself."  
  
  
He nods. "And secondly?"  
  
  
"About paying for a part of the wedding- she loves Octavia, Bellamy. She isn't doing this because she feels like she has to."  
  
  
"She's taking Octavia to the most expensive flower places. We might not be able to pay her back for it."  
  
  
"And you don't have to," Clarke says. "She's not expecting you to pay it back, she would never expect that. And honestly, mom is filthy rich. You know that. She's got one of the highest paying jobs in Ark but we don't live in luxury and I've always turned down her offers to pay for my rent and further studies. So she's just got hoards of money racked up over the past twenty-five years and nothing to use it for. Let her have this. And let Octavia have it."  
  
  
He stares at her before sighing and nodding. "It's just… hard. I've always taken care of everything she ever needed."  
  
  
"I know," Clarke says, reaching out and taking his hand. "But you don't have to anymore. You both have good jobs and if you ever need anything, you have so many people behind you."  
  
  
"Like you," He says, turning to face her completely and resting his cheek against the back of the sofa, mirroring her.  
  
  
"Like me," Clarke agrees.   
  
  
"Every time Octavia remembered the dress, she'd burst into tears," Bellamy says, chuckling. "And then Abby would steer her into a fancy looking shop to distract her but then she'd see the different ranges of flowers that she never thought she'd be able to choose from and started crying all over again."  
  
  
"Oh, bless her," Clarke laughs.   
  
  
"She's never had this… And she never thought she would, you know?" Bellamy says. "When mom died, O asked me if she left anything behind for us. I couldn't really tell a fifteen year old girl that the only thing our mother left for us were debts. So she grew up thinking she'd never have what a daughter was supposed to have. Mainly, either of her parents. So she never expected hand-me-downs or shopping trips or somebody driving down to the hospital in the next town if she got injured and had nobody else."   
  
  
"That was terrifying," Clarke breathes. Octavia was spending four months in Port Luna three cities over for an internship, living alone, when she got into a car accident one day. It was the middle of the night and Bellamy and Clarke would have taken at least another eight hours to get to her so Abby, who at that time lived only one town over, drove down immediately to be with the frightened and alone girl.   
  
  
"Yeah," Bellamy nods. "But just-," He takes a deep breath, "Abby's the mother she never even dreamed of ever having."  
  
  
"I'm glad," Clarke says, squeezing his hand slightly. "You both deserve a proper family and I can only hope that we give you at least a semblance of that." He pushes up slightly to press his lips against her head as a silent confirmation.  
  
  
"What are you going to do when Octavia moves out?" He asks.   
  
  
She frowns slightly. "I'm trying not to think about it but I know I have to. I probably can't afford the rent alone."  
  
  
"Even though you pay more than your fair share so that O can manage?"   
  
  
She glares at him. "I never told you that."  
  
  
He breathes out a laugh. "No, but she did. It doesn't take a genius to realise that this house is worth more than what she's paying for."   
  
  
"I had a feeling she might know," Clarke admits quietly. "I didn't want to make her uncomfortable so I just allowed her to pick up a few household chores for me when I used to come home late from the hospital, or pay for groceries more than I did."   
  
  
"I think her love for living with you outweighed her guilt in the end," Bellamy says. "But she and Lincoln are getting a place near the edge of the town. So bigger house but cheaper rent. And a countryside that they both love."  
  
  
"That'll be nice," Clarke smiles.  
  
  
"And, uh- my lease ends in a month," He says, eyes darting away from hers nervously. "If you, you know… Need a new roommate."  
  
  
Her hand stills in his and he's terrified that he's overstepped. But then she's relaxing a bit and when he looks up, she's staring at him as if he's the best thing she's ever seen. He doesn't know that that's exactly how she feels when she looks at him.  
  
  
"I was going to ask you," She admits quietly. "I- just didn't know if- you know, it would be awkward for you."  
  
  
"Why would it be awkward?" He asks frowning.  
  
  
"Because we fit so perfectly together," She says quickly, breathing out a nervous laugh. "And I'm pretty sure I'm half in love with you already." She feels her heart thunder in her chest at the sudden, unexpected confession but she's wanted to tell him for a while now because they've been best friends for as long as she can remember and she knew she loved him months ago when he came over after she was attacked in her apartment and he stayed holding her the entire night.   
  
  
She looks up to see him staring at her, mouth parted in surprise, and she feels her cheeks heat up. She pulls her hand away from his and clears her throat, looking away. She shouldn't have said anything. It was a mistake-  
  
  
He's shifting impossibly closer to her and takes her hand with one of his again and places the other against the side of her neck, holding her face in a gentle grasp. "Yeah?" She stares back at him and half-nods, half-shrugs. "Good, because I'm pretty sure I've loved you for years now but never thought I was good enough for you."   
  
  
She pulls away, frowning. "Are you serious? That's why you never told me?"  
  
  
He shrugs, ducking his head. "You deserved more than a boy from a broken home."  
  
  
She reaches out to tilt his head up. "You're the best thing that has _ever_ happened to me, Bellamy." She surges upwards and presses her lips against his lightly and in seconds, he's pushing closer to her, hand tangling in her hair. When he pulls away, their foreheads pressed together, they both release a small laugh.  
  
  
"My mom's going to be partly insufferable and partly over the moon," She says as they settle into the sofa again, just closer together than before.   
  
  
"Why?" He asks curiously.  
  
  
"Insufferable because she's been telling me to go for it for months now," Clarke says, grinning. "Over the moon because I think she might love you more than she loves me."  
  
  
+++  
  
  
When Bellamy sits down between Abby and Clarke after placing Octavia's hand in Lincoln's at the altar, Clarke reaches out to lace her fingers between his. He smiles down at her and they look back at the ceremony. Marcus is seated on Abby's right, their hands joined, and Raven is sitting on Clarke's left, arms looped together.   
  
  
"Do you, Lincoln Woods, take Octavia Blake to be your faithfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"   
  
  
"I do," Lincoln says, smiling down at Octavia.  
  
  
" _My beautiful girl,_ " Abby whispers, a tear falling down her cheek. She makes no attempt to wipe it away. Bellamy reaches out with his free hand to take her's and she looks up at him with a watery smile.   
  
  
"And do you, Octavia Blake, take Lincoln Woods to be your faithfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"   
  
  
"Death can bugger right off, nobody's taking me away from him," Octavia says, grinning back at him, and a laugh ripples through the gathering of fifty-four seated in two sections on either side of the aisle. "You bet I do."   
  
  
Bellamy grits his teeth together in an attempt to stay composed and takes a deep breath in.   
  
  
"She grew up so fast," Raven mumbles, wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. "And she made all sappy while doing it."  
  
  
Clarke smiles and leans her head against Raven's for a second before leaning it against Bellamy's shoulder.   
  
  
"Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride."  
  
  
Octavia turns cheekily towards the front row behind her at her family. "Fake Mom, fake dad, real Bell- please close your eyes while I kiss the man I'm going to have babies with." All of them burst out laughing, Abby burying her face against Marcus' shoulder while Bellamy throws his head back, large grin on his face, his eyes squeezed shut.   
  
  
Octavia spins back around and grabs Lincoln by the lapels of his suit and pulls him down to kiss him and using Raven's wolf-whistle as a cue, the crowd rises to their feet to cheer loudly. 

* * *

  
  
**ii. Raven**  
  
  
Raven barrels into Clarke and Bellamy's apartment four days before her wedding with tears pouring down her cheeks. Clarke's eyes widen as she sits up straight on the sofa and opens her arms wordlessly. Raven falls into them, sobbing uncontrollably.   
  
  
"Hey, hey, I'm here," Clarke murmurs, holding her friend tightly and wondering what could have possibly happened to have warranted this reaction from her usually tough friend. Bellamy runs out of the kitchen at the sounds from the living room and seeing Raven, he sits down on the coffee table in front of her and takes her hand, exchanging a worried glance with Clarke.  
  
  
"Raven?" Bellamy asks. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?" The brunette shakes her head and takes a few shuddering breaths in.  
  
  
"M-Marcus," Raven splutters before a sob rips through her throat.   
  
  
Clarke looks at Bellamy, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.   
  
  
"What did he do, Raven?" Clarke asks firmly.  
  
  
Raven takes a few more deep breaths before sitting up slightly, wiping her cheeks. "He- he asked- he asked if he could walk me down the aisle." A fresh set of tears well up in her eyes before pouring down her cheeks and Clarke breathes out a relieved laugh, Bellamy ducking his head to do the same.   
  
  
"That's good, right?" Clarke asks softly. Bellamy gets up to grab Raven a glass of water. He passes it to her and she drinks slowly until her breathing has turned normal.  
  
  
"Yeah," She says, shooting them a watery smile. "I just-" She swallows hard, "I never thought I'd have anyone to walk me down the aisle. After my mom died, I lost all hope of ever being somebody's child again. And then in sweep fucking Abby Griffin and Marcus Kane, just- just pretending like I'm their daughter."  
  
  
Clarke laughs, holding her friend closer.   
  
  
"If Kane hadn't asked you, you know I would've done it," Bellamy says softly. Raven smiles, nodding and wiping her cheeks. "Or Clarke. Or Octavia. Or Miller or Lincoln or even Murphy."  
  
  
Raven scrunches up her face. "Murphy might be pushing it too far."   
  
  
"He only pretends to hate us," Clarke assures her, grinning. "But yeah, if Marcus hadn't offered, we just assumed one of us would do it. I'm pretty sure I saw Miller rehearsing in front of the mirror the other day."   
  
  
"I know," Raven says. "And that's more than I could possibly ask for."  
  
  
"But it's different coming from Kane," Bellamy says understandingly. Raven nods, leaning her head against Clarke's shoulder.   
  
  
"He's like the father I never knew existed. All I ever knew from when I could see were assholes peddling my mother drugs or drinking until they threw up in my living room. I grew up believing that all men were pieces of shit and that I would never ever rely on one. And then when I was old enough, I began believing that parents only existed to let their children down. You know what I mean, right?" She directs the question at Bellamy who nods gravely. She sighs heavily. "But Kane is different. He does things without expecting anything in return. He cares with all his heart and then some more. You know when he asked me if he could walk me down the aisle, he looked _nervous_? Like he was overstepping. I have _never_ known a man in my life who was worried about overstepping. They came, they took by force and they left me behind. But here he was, the chief of police, nervous that he was asking too much of me and giving me the option to say no."  
  
  
Bellamy holds Raven's hand a little tighter and Clarke's fingers curl around the fabric of Raven's shirt.   
  
  
"I said yes," Raven smiles. "Of course I said yes. "When Gina asked me to marry her four months ago, I thought that that was all I needed. Her and me at the alter exchanging vows. That was the only part of the ceremony I allowed myself to dream about. But now I can dream about being walked down the aisle by a man who considers me his daughter and wants nothing in exchange but my happiness," She rolls her eyes to the ceiling as new tears spring to her eyes, "I- I can dream about looking out at the front row of the church and seeing a family who want me to be theirs. I can dream about having a father-daughter dance and a mother who will kiss me on the forehead before I leave for my honeymoon." She squeezes her eyes shut, twin tears slipping down her cheeks and laughs lightly before releasing a huff of a breath before opening her eyes and laughing again. "I'm such a mess." Bellamy shifts onto the sofa on Raven's other side and she leans into him.  
  
  
"But you're happy?" Clarke asks.  
  
  
"I couldn't be happier."

* * *

  
  
**iii. Clarke**

  
Clarke and Bellamy slump into opposite chairs at their dining table. Her hair is tied up into a french braid and she's dressed in jean shorts and a loose white blouse. He's wearing khaki shorts and a white round-collared t-shirt and they're both sweating buckets.   
  
  
"I am so glad that is done," Clarke says, taking a drink out of her glass of orange juice.   
  
  
"Spring cleaning is actually the worst," Bellamy says.  
  
  
"Especially if your boyfriend decides to do it in peak summer," Clarke glares playfully at him.  
  
  
"We were both too busy to do it in actual Spring. And once the school term starts again and I need to go in for work while you get placed at the hospital again for your new internship, none of us would have the time nor the energy to do it after summer," Bellamy reasons. She sticks her tongue out at him and he grins at her.  
  
  
"So I found something in my drawer that I've kept for a while now. I was wondering if you might want it," She says, her voice light. He raises an eyebrow and she picks up the box sitting on the chair beside her, hidden from view underneath the table, and slides it across to him. He looks curious as he lifts the lid of the box to reveal the silver watch inside it. His breath catches in his throat.  
  
  
"Clarke… Is this… your father's watch?" He asks softly. He raises his eyes to meet her's. They're both thinking of that day in their third and final year of University at Polis. Clarke had learned about her father's accident and had come home to Ark to attend the funeral and Bellamy, Octavia and Raven had come with her. Bellamy had found Clarke crying in her bedroom clutching a watch. She said it belonged to her father and belonged to Abby's father before that. It had a been a present from him the day he gave Jake his blessings to marry his daughter. Jake had promised Clarke that when Clarke chose the man or woman she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, he would gift it to them. But Jake passed away and Clarke realised that the tradition died with him.  
  
  
Clarke nods, fingers fidgeting. "You don't have to keep it," She says quickly because the meaning behind giving him the watch is very clear to both of them.   
  
  
He breathes out heavily and then laughs. Her eyes snap up to look at him.   
  
  
"Wait one second," He says before disappearing into his room. He returns with a small velvet box which he places between them on the oak table. He lifts the lid to reveal a silver ring with a blue sapphire sitting in the middle of a ring of smaller diamonds.   
  
  
Her hand flies to her mouth and she looks up at him.  
  
  
"It's not a Blake family heirloom," He admits. "Octavia and I chose it last week. I-" He hesitates, frowning, "I know that she and I don't have any hand-me-downs. Abby gave Octavia her gown and she gave Raven your grandmother's necklace. And now you're giving me your father's watch. I don't have a mother who can gift you anything and I don't have a father who can shower you with love and I'm sorry because you deserve both of those things and more-"  
  
  
"Bellamy, stop," Clarke says firmly. She reaches out and grabs his hand. "I don't care about that. And why are you apologising? None of that is your fault."  
  
  
"Yeah, but you shouldn't have to settle for anything less," He says, pulling his hand out of hers and frustratedly running it through his curls.  
  
  
"I'm not," She says, reaching her fingers out seeking his own. He sighs and grasps her hand. "The only thing I want from _any_ of this is you. I love you, Bellamy. Heirlooms and parentage isn't going to change that. I'm not settling for less because you are more than I could have ever wished for."  
  
  
"I have no idea what I did right in my life to deserve you."  
  
  
She smiles before taking her hand out of his. She reaches out to pick up the box containing the watch and stands up. Never taking her eyes of him, she turns the box so the watch is facing him. She sinks down onto one knee. "Bellamy Blake, would you like to spend the rest of your life with me?"  
  
  
He breathes out a laugh before picking the velvet box off the table. He slips off the chair and onto the floor on his knees. He pops the lid open and turns it to face her. "Clarke Griffin, will you marry me?"  
  
  
"That is _so_ unfair. I asked first," She argues, pulling an offended expression.   
  
  
"Fine," He grins. "Yes, I would love to spend the rest of my life with you." Her smile stretches from ear to ear as she places the box down, moves onto both knees, and takes the watch out. She slips it onto his wrist and secures it, leaning up to press a kiss against his mouth. He takes the ring and she holds her hand out and he slips it onto her third finger.   
  
  
"You know what this means, right?" She asks, holding her hand up to display the ring.   
  
  
"Traditionally it would mean we're engaged," He says.  
  
  
"That and," She says, grinning, "This ring is going to one day be handed down to our grandchildren and great grandchildren and will become the first official Blake family heirloom." He grins back at her before she places her arms around his neck. "That's the beauty of traditions. It's never too late to make a new one."  
  
  
"I love you," He says, pressing his forehead against hers.  
  
  
"I love you too," She replies before kissing his smiling lips with hers.   
  
  
+++


End file.
